Dracula Movie Critique – Besson’s Romantic Reimagining of the Gothic Classic is Absurd but Watchable

It’s possible audiences aren’t clamoring for an updated adaptation of Dracula from Luc Besson, the celebrated French director for stylish excess. However, it’s worth noting: his richly designed romantic vampire tale boasts bold vision and flair – and amid its theatrical camp, it could be preferable to it to the recent, stately interpretation by Robert Eggers of Nosferatu. There are some very bizarre touches, including one shot that appears to show a land border between France and Romania.

Christoph Waltz as a Clever but Weary Vampire-Hunting Priest

Christoph Waltz plays a witty yet careworn man of the church pursuing the undead – it’s surprising he never took on this character previously – who finds himself in Paris in 1889 during the centennial of the French Revolution. The same goes for the sinister Dracula, played by the expert in grotesque roles Caleb Landry Jones using a distorted Eastern European tone reminiscent of Carell’s Gru character in the Despicable Me films. This character that he too was born to take on.

The Story: A Saga of Heartbreak

Here’s the premise: Dracula has been restlessly roaming the earth in anguish for hundreds of years after his transformation into a vampire, a punishment due to his blasphemous mourning following the loss of his wife, Elisabeta (a first film part for Zoë Bleu, daughter of Rosanna Arquette). The count has looked tirelessly for a lady who could be the return of his departed beloved. Unfortunately, the lucky lady is revealed as Mina (portrayed once more by Bleu), the demure fiancee of Dracula’s feeble property handler, Jonathan Harker (played by Ewens Abid), who just traveled to the count’s castle to negotiate his real estate holdings and whose miniature portrait of the winsome Mina attracted Dracula’s gaze.

The Filmmaker’s Approach and Lighthearted Touch

Besson arranges Dracula’s flashback sequence of global roaming sporting extravagant attire skillfully, and he willingly includes providing humorous scenes reminiscent of Mel Brooks – for example the count’s repeated and futile attempts to end his own life after Elisabeta’s death, in addition to absurd moments that result after Dracula sprays himself in a certain perfume during the 1700s in Florence, which makes him unavoidably attractive to females. Absurd yet engaging.

Dracula is on digital platforms from 1 December and for physical purchase starting the twenty-second of December. It screens in Australian cinemas from 5 February 2026.